Friday, June 25, 2010

No, not the drink, (ask me again in the morning) but the tree. I know, I know, ...it's invasive, especially in the South. The seeds can lay dormant for years and sprout at random, overtaking native plants and blocking light to ground dwellers.

Introduced to the U.S. in 1745 as an ornamental, the mimosa's native range is Iran to Japan.

I have a "volunteer" that popped up in one of my beds, and I have let it grow. It is so beautiful this time of year.

But the knowledge that it could be hurting the environment (there's enough of that going on right now) is giving me pause.I could take it down, save a few seeds, and plant them in a large container. It would be fairly easy to keep it pruned and dead-head the flowers each year before it went to seed.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

I've been thinking about one of my favorite all time furniture looks...the library table. Not necessarily your standard oversized wood table in the English Manor house , covered in various antique decorative objects, with maps and plans for the latest addition to the formal gardens, but rather the "idea" of a library table.It can be any type of table from traditional to modern, round, square, wood, metal, glass, etc., etc....A library table can also be a desk, dining table, entrance or hall table. It can be placed in almost any room. I've floated them in the center of large living rooms and bedrooms, placed them under staircases, behind sofas, in hallways, entrance halls, and on a screened porch.

Library Tables can serve a multitude of functions from casual multi-use to super formal.

TABLE TOP INSPIRATION-

Lighting:

Visual Aids:

Going Green:

Reading, Writing, Art, and Science:

Not only have I suggested and used many library tables for clients, I have my own in the den that reverts to cozy fireside dining when the mood strikes. I have a petite one on my screened porch that showcases my nature finds. And now there is the "idea" of one in the bedroom......Stay tuned...